A personal injury can include, for example, an injury at work or in a traffic accident, an injury received as a result of faulty goods or services, an injury sustained by tripping over paving stones, an injury caused by errors in hospital treatment or one sustained by a victim in the course of a crime. An injury can be physical and/or psychological.

 

If you have sustained a personal injury you may want to consider the following:-

• do you want to make a complaint to the person or organisation you believe was responsible for the injuries (see under heading Making a complaint)
• do you want to make a claim for compensation to cover losses you have suffered as a result of the injury (see under heading Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority)
• are there any immediate financial problems arising because of the injury, for example, you are unable to work (see under heading Financial problems)
• do you want to contact an organisation that could offer support or counselling (see under heading Support and counselling).

• inform the police if, for example, the injury resulted from a road accident
• if the injury resulted from a road accident, report it to your insurance company. The insurance policy may be invalid if an accident is not reported
• if the injury resulted from an accident at work, you should notify your employer and the accident must be recorded in the accident book.
  Your employer has a legal responsibility to report the accident to the Health and Safety Executive or the local authority environmental department and can be prosecuted if they fail to do so
• report the injury to your doctor because it could become more serious. You should do this even if the injury seems minor. If you subsequently go to court to get compensation for the injury, the doctor will be asked to provide a medical report
• gather evidence about the accident and injuries. For example, it may be useful to take photographs of the scene of an accident and of what caused the injury. You should also, if possible, write an account of the incident while details are still fresh in your mind. If there are witnesses, you should make a note of their names and addresses.

If you have had an accident or suffered an injury you might be able to get an explanation of what went wrong and to receive an apology. In some cases, there may be an official complaints procedure you can use.

 

One disadvantage of using complaints procedures is that they are often time consuming and the final result will be no more than an apology. If you have suffered a personal injury and you also want compensation, you should be aware that there are time limits for taking legal action (see under heading Taking legal action) and going through a complaints procedure may delay matters.

• a government department
• a local authority
• your employer
• the police
• your school or other educational institution
• your hospital or other National Health Service institution.

If you want more information about how to complain to these types of bodies you should seek specialist advice from an experienced adviser, for example, a Citizens Advice Bureau.

 

There are four main ways of getting compensation for a personal injury:-

• using a claims assessor (see under heading Claims assessors)
• taking legal action in a civil court (see under heading Taking legal action)
  making a claim to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (see under heading Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority) (Criminal Injuries Compensation Agency in Northern Ireland)
• through a criminal compensation order (see under heading Criminal compensation orders).

Amount of compensation  If you have sustained a personal injury you may be able to claim two types of compensation, general damages and special damages.

 

General damages are paid as compensation for an injury, for example, a payment for pain and suffering or loss of future earnings. The court will decide on the amount to be paid.

 

Special damages are paid as compensation for actual financial loss caused by the accident up to the date of the hearing. These can include damage to clothing or other belongings, the costs of care, travel costs to hospital, medical expenses (including the cost of private treatment) and the cost of hiring and/or repairing a car if it has been damaged in the accident.

 

If a court decides that you were partly to blame for the accident, it may reduce the amount of damages you receive. An example of this would be if you were not wearing a seat belt when you were involved in a traffic accident.

 

Deduction of social security benefits from compensation  

If you have been receiving certain social security benefits because of an accident in which you sustained a personal injury, you may have to pay these back out of any compensation you get. The rules about deduction from benefits are complex, and you are urged to seek professional advice.

 

 

If you have sustained a personal injury you may be considering using the services of a claims assessor (sometimes known as a claims manager). Claims assessors offer to take up cases on a 'no win, no fee' basis but there may be some disadvantages, including:-

• a claims assessor will not usually be a solicitor and may not have a solicitor taking responsibility for the case. If this is so, the assessor will not be able to claim compensation through the courts and if you have suffered the injury you may receive less compensation
• the claims assessor may ask you to pay a percentage of whatever compensation you receive to the assessor. You should be aware that while paying 50% of £1,000 damages may be acceptable to you, paying 50% of £10,000 may not.
• If you are considering using a claims assessor you should first seek advice from an experienced adviser.

If you want to take legal action to claim compensation for a personal injury you will need to get advice from a solicitor specialising in these types of cases. This must be done as soon as possible as there are strict time limits on taking legal action (see below).

 

Time limits  

There are different time limits within which you must begin legal action in a personal injury claim. The most common claim in a personal injury case is negligence and the time limit for this is three years. This means that court proceedings must be issued within three years of you first being aware that you have suffered an injury.

 

If you are considering taking legal action and have not yet been to a solicitor you will need to be aware of the time limits for taking action and should seek help from an experienced adviser.

 

Paying for legal action  

• a solicitor or organisation providing publicly-funded legal services
  For more information about publicly-funded legal services
• a conditional fee agreement (see below)
• a trade union or other membership organisation such as the AA or RAC
• an insurance policy. Many house contents policies, car insurance or travel insurance policies have legal expenses cover attached.

Conditional fee agreement

A conditional fee agreement means that if you win a case you must pay your solicitor's fees and expenses from the damages you receive. If you lose, you will not have to pay fees to your own solicitor but you may have to pay the other side's costs. Your solicitor will normally ask you to take out insurance to cover this.

 

For more information about conditional fee agreements, see 'How much do they charge?' in Solicitor Guide.  

 

Choosing a solicitor  

If you want to take legal action over a personal injury you should consult a solicitor who is a member of the Law Society's personal injury panel or clinical negligence panel, depending on the nature of the injury. The Law Society can give details of solicitors on these panels and can be contacted at:-

 

113-114 Chancery Lane
London WC2A 1PL
Tel: 020 7242 1222

 

 

The Law Society of Northern Ireland has a list of solicitors specialising in particular areas. This list can be obtained from:-

The Law Society of Northern Ireland
Law Society House
98 Victoria Street
Belfast BT1 3JE
Tel: 028 9023 1614
Fax: 028 9023 2606
Email: info@lawsoc-ni.org
Website: www.lawsoc-ni.org

 

Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL)  is an association of solicitors who are experienced in personal injuries work. APIL can be contacted at:-

Castle Quay
Castle Boulevard
Nottingham NG7 1FW
Tel: 0115 958 0585
Fax: 0115 958 0885
Email: mail@apil.com
Website: www.apil.org.uk

 

The Motor Accident Solicitors Society (MASS) is an association of solicitors experienced in dealing with personal injuries resulting from motor accidents. Participating solicitors provide a free initial consultation. MASS can be contacted at:-

Bridge House
54 Baldwin Street
Bristol BS1 1QD
Tel: 0117 929 2560
Fax: 0117 904 7220
Email: office@mass.org.uk
Website: www.mass.org.uk

 

Motoring organisation members  

If you have sustained an injury as a result of a traffic accident and you are a member of a motoring organisation, for example, the AA or RAC, you may be able to get specialist legal advice through that organisation.

 

Trade union members 
If your injury resulted from an accident at work you should, if you are a member, contact your trade union. The union may instruct solicitors to pursue a claim on your behalf and you will not have to pay for this.

 

If you have been injured as a result of a criminal act you may be able to claim compensation through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (Criminal Injuries Compensation Agency in Northern Ireland). You may have been the direct victim of, for example, an assault or your injury may have been sustained when you were attempting to help the police after a crime had been committed. A close relative of a person who died because of injuries can also make a claim.

 

You must report the incident to the police at the earliest opportunity and an application must normally be made within two years of the incident. However, in exceptional circumstances, the authority may be willing to extend this limit. An example would be if you are making a claim for abuse you suffered as a child.

 

A request for compensation must be made on an application form, which can be obtained from:-

 

Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
Tay House
300 Bath Street
Glasgow G2 4LN
Tel: 0141 331 2726/0800 358 3601
Fax: 0141 331 2287
Website: www.cica.gov.uk

 

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Agency in Northern Ireland
Royston House
34 Upper Queen Street
Belfast
BT1 6FD
Tel: 028 9024 9944
Fax: 028 9024 6956

 

A person convicted of a criminal offence may be ordered by the court to pay compensation for an injury, loss or damage they have caused to someone else by committing the offence. If you are the person who has sustained the injury or loss you cannot apply for this yourself, so it is important that you give the prosecution full and accurate information about the injuries and losses to put before the court.

 

The amount of compensation will depend on what the offender can afford to pay, but the maximum is £5,000.If a criminal compensation order is made, the court will be responsible for making sure the offender pays.

 

If you are having financial problems as a result of a personal injury you sustained in, for example, an accident or an incident of violent crime, you may need to consult a specialist money adviser for help with debt and benefits.

 

You may need financial advice because a member of your family has been injured or killed in an accident or as the result of a crime. You may be able to claim compensation for the loss of financial support.

 

If you are experiencing financial problems because of a personal injury you or a member of your family has sustained you should consult a specialist adviser, for example, a Citizens Advice Bureau.